Spiderhead

"Dud city. SKIP IT."

"Though it starts with promise, Spiderhead... treats its most intriguing elements like an afterthought."

"(A) heavy-handed debacle."

"All premise and no payoff."

"Spiderhead really goes off the rails... But at least it has rails to go off of, and they’re pretty good ones."

"Spiderhead is a lousy name for a not-much-better movie."

"Like a lesser episode of Black Mirror."

"Having stretched out the story idea to feature-film length, the film doesn’t really give the sense that it knows where it is going."

"Kosinski can’t make the inane philosophising about free will sound profound or new..."

"(Hemsworth's) performance in Spiderhead might well be the best thing he’s done..."

"(The film) offers the pleasure of watching two actors, just coming into their full powers, going at it full-bore, moment by moment."

"Woefully bland..."

"With nimble performances, slick polish, dark-pitched wit, razor sharp sentiments, and a Yacht Rock-infused soundtrack, the film proves a seductive high."

"A highly talky, at times upsetting prison drama — think Fortress meets Limitless."

"It’s essentially the Ex Machina you can follow while making cups of tea and checking your phone, which may be all that Netflix wanted from it."

"By no means a flawless execution, Spiderhead is a compelling story that had me hooked from the opening shot to the closing credits."

"Teller’s lead performance is characteristically layered and complex... He plays subtext beautifully in Spiderhead, with plangent notes of regret."

"The movie rarely meets a point it can't make three times over, then hit with a mallet."

"Teller and Smollett deliver grounded, emotionally committed performances..."

"All the ingredients are there for a daring satire... but the icky execution gets every creative decision wrong."

"Despite a few too many conventional turns, it remains a worthwhile watch."

"An extremely intriguing concept and fantastic performances all around the board..."